Wind Chill - 5

Aww, gee Mom, why can't I play outside?

Poverty Self-Pity Party Post

As I write this, the ice on my glasses is still thawing, the dogs are galavanting like hippos in heat, and my family room couches stink.

School was cancelled today because of dangerous wind chills, but a puppy whose genes have equipped her to dig through avalanches in the Alps, still wants to go outside to chew sticks. Yep, she likes to lie in the snow and have a good chew. Meanwhile, I'm standing as close to the house as possible, hoping some meager heat might reflect off the white siding and keep frostbite at bay.

Lately, upon arising at the ungodly hour of 6:30 a.m., I've been dressing like Heidi.

No, my hair isn't long enough for braids, and even if it were, I'd need to wear it down to cover my ears.

First, I pull on a pair of sweat pants over my pajama pants, carefully tucking the pajamas into a second pair of socks. On top of my long-sleeved pj top goes a flannel shirt, buttoned, and a fleece-lined sweat jacket. On top of all this goes my bathrobe.

This way, when Ivy needs to go out, I pull my winter jacket on over everything, my boots, gloves, scarf, hat topped w/sweat jacket hood, and I'm ready to face the morning.

Yeah, right.

Okay, okay, I know the idea for the puppy was mine, but this is bordering on insanity.

Oh, maybe that was Michael's point???

Anyway, on to more pity and poverty, someone slammed into the car my oldest son drives while it was parked in front of our house. It's old, really old, but works great. But because it's so old we don't carry comprehensive insurance.

And of course it was a hit and run.

Sooo, the repair to the body (front bumper, headlight assembly, etc.) will be close to $1,000.

Gulp.

Since Stephen is leaving for South Africa in 10 days, we'll be able to put off repairs for a couple of months.

Pitiable?

You bet.

Crisis number 2?

The van is dead.

Yes, our 140,000-some mile, 10-year-old van has kicked the bucket.

Of course, we put about $1,500 into it last spring, but the repairs it needs now would far exceed any value it has left.

So, we're down to two vehicles, the car Zachary drives but decided not to take to college and the Prius we still owe $11,000 on.

We figure we can make it for sure until summer, when we might have to figure out how to purchase another van.

Sigh.

Piteous.

Oh, did I mention Michael's company announced there are to be no raises this year?

We wanted to refinance our mortgage, combining first and second mortgages into one 12-year loan. It's unlikely, however, because we probably owe more on the house than it's worth. And I'm not living in a swanky neighborhood, either. We knew when we downsized to this house that we would put more into it than we'd ever get out, but still.

Sigh.

Pitiful.

The antique trunks we use for coffee tables in the family and living rooms have had to be carried to the basement. Puppy claws were marking up the sides and suddenly there didn't seem to be enough room in the house with both the trunks and the dogs.

I have two cloth love seats in the family room that are covered w/denim slipcovers. These are the love seats that Wally is allowed to sleep on. He has taken this permission a step or two further over the years and has thrown up on them numerous times, the contents of which have varied from molasses-smelling glucosamine chondroitin for his arthritis (he ate half a one pound container), hay and rabbit poop (a delightful combination), two boxes of chocolate covered cherries (mmm, mmm, good) and an entire box of Raisin Bran (gotta love that fiber).

We have a rug/upholstery cleaner and have used it over and over again on these love seats. We've removed the cushion covers and laundered them, washed the cushions themselves, covered them with baking soda, sprayed them with Febreze, and pretty much scrubbed them inside and out more times than the manufacturer certainly ever imagined possible.

The scotch guard protective coating? Long gone.

I'm sorry to report they are now beyond redemption, the odors of the past couple of years so permeating their fibers that there is no rescue. Mind you, I've had these two love seats for about 15 years.

The only choice is replacement, but not with upholstery.

Oh no, I've learned my lesson.

It's got to be leather, which though it can scratch, won't absorb odors.

Just plain pathetic.

Where will all the cold, hard cash come from for these many purchases?

Good question.

I didn't even mention the surgery Wally needs later this spring - $500-$700, Ivy's spaying - $700 or more, Melissa's braces - $1200 down and $152/month for two years, Zachary's tuition, let alone my ever increasing wine bill.

Hmm, maybe with my degree in journalism I could get a paper route...

Fresh Herbs

Would you take a look at that rosemary bush? It grows on the side of my mom's house in Arkansas. We took this picture in January, just a couple of weeks ago.


Here are my mom and me doing our Vanna White impersonations... I include this photo only so you can see how truly tall this bush is. Really.

My mom usually cuts it back each fall, but wasn't able to do so this year. Note the new growth in the photo above.
New growth.
In January.



I can buy local herbs here at the grocery store pretty much year 'round from a company called Mariposa Farms in Grinnell, Iowa. But at about $3 a small bunch, they're pretty pricey. I brought home several bags and have plans to use them up in some of my favorite dishes.

Leaving the frigid north and basking in the warmth of the south led Michael to talk about where to retire. Boy, wouldn't it be nice to be someplace warm? We could grow lettuce and other greens year 'round in a hoop house, never have to shovel...

Ah yes.
But then I pointed out the horrible, humid, hot summers, when the temperature hits 100 by 10 a.m. and you're held hostage to air conditioning for months at a time.

Besides, we still have fresh herbs in our garden.
They aren't exactly growing.
It's sort of a cryogenic preservation.

Earlier this week I needed fresh sage for a soup I was making. Remembering where in the garden it had grown, I went out with a shovel and did a little excavating... and wa la! Fresh sage!

I harvested what I needed and carefully recovered the rest to protect it for another recipe. The leaves look a little shriveled in the pictures, but they weren't once I brushed all the snow off.

So, who needs to move to warmer climes when you can grow herbs here in Iowa in January?

Olympic Crocheting

Melissa and I each crocheted a scarf for the Special Olympics World Winter Games. The scarf project encourages a connection between scarf makers and the athletes and adds to community awareness.

Organizers of the scarf project ask that makers include a short note to the athlete who will receive his/her scarf, which I think is a nice touch.

It's fun to think that some young man or woman at the Special Olympics winter games in Idaho will be wearing the scarves we made. We hope our athletes know how much we're rooting for them!

Chocolate Therapy Part Deux

Outside:
Forecast for Des Moines: Frigid
Tonight: 100% Snow, 3"-5"
Wind Chill: -7

Inside:
Forecast for my house: Cozy
High: 65, with a definite warming trend near fireplace or when baking
Tonight: Cream cheese/Chocolate espresso brownies, blankets, lots of snuggling

Mmm, perfect.

Baby's First Bath

We've been hesitant to give Ivy a bath because of how cold it's been and how long she'll stay wet, but were advised to go ahead and introduce her to the bathtub now. The implication being the longer we wait, the more likely she'll be to have issues.

At 46 pounds as of Friday, she's about 1/3 of her adult weight (probably). Believe me, that's a lot of stink to be wallowing around on my lap every day.

Michael and Sarah bit the bullet and bathed her last night. Poor baby was scared and shaking, but it was fast and not too traumatic.

With her fur all wet she looks like a hound dog!

Treats, as always, help any situation.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

Are we done yet, Daddy?

It took lots of towels to dry her off.

My lips are wet!

Are we done now?

All clean!

Dark Days Eat Local Challenge - Week 8

Between taking son #2 back to college, fighting a virus, and of course, the puppy being, um, well, a puppy, I'm late in posting last week's local meal.
But it was a good one.
Above you see the applesauce chocolate chip muffins I made using local applesauce from a dear friend, local eggs and milk, and locally produced white and whole wheat flours. Wish I could claim the chocolate was local, but we'll need to get several more decades into global warming before that's a reality!

The main dish was cream of turkey and wild rice soup, made with local organic turkey, homemade broth, local cream, and carrots and onions from my CSA. The wild rice was from Minnesota, which is pretty darn close to us, if not down right local.

I was going to apologize for the appearance of the pie, but it actually looks much better in the photo than it did IRL! I made a raspberry cream streusel pie, and boy oh boy, was it incredible. I used red and black raspberries from my fruit CSA, frozen last summer. The cream, egg and flour were all local as well.

This meal was so easy to make and I had all the local ingredients on hand, either in the freezer or fresh from other local sources. In the past I've had a hard using up my frozen, canned and otherwise preserved foods. This year I'm doing much better "shopping" from my freezer and shelves on a daily basis. So I'm running out of things faster, but enjoying these "fruits" of my summer labors on a steadier, more ongoing basis.